Earned Wage Access Consumer Protection Act advances out of House Financial Services Committee

FDA advisory committees give our own agency experts outside, independent, and professional advice on various complex scientific, technical, and policy issues. The FDA’s complex and multifaceted mission includes evaluating new medical devices and medicines, including vaccines and other therapies, to determine if they are safe and effective for their intended use. Consumer Reports (CR) applauds the committee’s overwhelmingly bipartisan passage of key consumer safety provisions that will make roads and vehicles safer for people across the country. WASHINGTON, DC—The House Energy and Commerce Committee today passed the Motor Vehicle Modernization Act of 2026—the motor vehicle safety and consumer protection title of Congress’s once-in-five-years surface transportation reauthorization. Proposal submissions are sought for Industry Forums (IF) featuring talks, demos and panel discussions on the latest technical and business issues, challenges, and solutions in CE industry.

The committees review and evaluate data about the safety, effectiveness, and appropriate use of products that are intended for use in the prevention, treatment, mitigation, or diagnosis of human diseases and conditions – and any other products the FDA regulates. As the House considers whether to move forward on a new reconciliation package, there is talk of using reconciliation to significantly reduce government waste, fraud, errors, and abuse (WFEA) – as we… For a million-dollar mortgage, the same change in rates would increase monthly payments by $350 and lifetime costs by nearly $130,000. As an example, a 55 basis point increase in mortgage rates would increase monthly payments on a $500, year mortgage by almost $200 and would increase the lifetime cost of the mortgage by $64,000. If interest rates remain 55 basis points above projections, net interest costs per household would exceed $11,000 by FY 2030 and $17,000 by 2036.

Investment in and adoption of artificial intelligence may be contributing to the high productivity growth rates that the U.S. economy saw in 2Q25 and 3Q25. Increasing the recency of work requirements from five of the last ten years to four of the last six years for the Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits would save $70 billion over a decade. Immediately adopting a flat benefit at 150 percent over the poverty level would save $400 billion over a decade and close 115 percent of the solvency gap, while setting the benefits at 125 percent of poverty would save $820 billion and close 150 percent of the solvency gap. Policymakers could go even further in increasing Social Security's progressivity by gradually replacing the current formula with a flat benefit – thus lowering benefits for higher earners while increasing benefits for lower earners. With trust fund exhaustion looming, policymakers should consider CBO’s options to avoid cuts to benefits, improve the nation's economic and fiscal outlook, and preserve the program for future generations.

Committees Provide Scientific, Medical Advice

The main reasons for these fee increases are operational and staffing expenses, including costs related to LATC's business modernization efforts to update IT platforms to make it easier for candidates to apply for an exam and for licensees to apply and renew. The bill also prohibits discrimination against consumers on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex (including on the basis of pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), marital status, or age. The preliminary Opinions in this section have been developed by the SCCS on the basis of specific sets of data (dossiers) submitted by specific applicants (for example, industry, Member State authorities, etc.) to satisfy specific regulatory requirements.

New rules for a more sustainable EU automotive sector

Under current budget rules, these savings cannot be used to offset new tax cuts or spending and cannot be part of a reconciliation bill, but they can be used to improve Social Security solvency and to reduce projected deficits (which assume full benefit payments continue beyond trust fund exhaustion). Over the same period, dedicated payroll tax and other revenue sources are projected to be $2.6 trillion short of costs, exhausting the old-age trust fund by 2033, according to the Congressional Budget Office (CBO). On a combined basis, the Social Security Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance (OASDI) trust fund is projected to spend $21 trillion over the next decade, with outlays rising to 6 percent of GDP by 2035.

• Through this work the FTC obtained more than $1.8 billion in redress for consumers affected by deceptive and unfair business practices.
• The agency fulfills this mission by pursuing aggressive law enforcement actions against those that perpetrate or facilitate fraud and through consumer education and outreach.
• Over the same period, dedicated payroll tax and other revenue sources are projected to be $2.6 trillion short of costs, exhausting the old-age trust fund by 2033, according to the Congressional Budget Office (CBO).
• As the House considers whether to move forward on a new reconciliation package, there is talk of using reconciliation to significantly reduce government waste, fraud, errors, and abuse (WFEA) – as we…

Supplemental Funding Should Be Carefully Reviewed and Fully Offset

Since high energy prices can lead to inflation for other consumer goods and services – such as food (through fertilizer and fuel for farming equipment) and airfares – they increase uncertainty for the outlook. Current data on labor supply and labor demand suggest both softened similarly in 2025, leading to soft hiring without a sharp rise in unemployment. According to The Wall Street Journal’s quarterly survey of economists, the average probability of a recession in the next twelve months was just 27%, down from a 33% average probability in the October survey and Consumer committee the lowest probability since January 2025.

Preliminary monthly data suggests growth continues to be driven by strong private final domestic demand. Owing to the government shutdown last autumn and subsequent delays in the reporting of source data, estimates for GDP in the latter half of 2025 were delayed. Overall, the U.S. economy appears to be entering the new year on a firm footing. Monthly core goods prices were flat on average, and inflation for rent of housing slowed further.

Updated restrictionsTriphenyl phosphate banned due to potential endocrine-disrupting and genotoxicity risks

As the average interest rate on debt (R) rises above the economic growth rate (G), debt can begin to rise rapidly and uncontrollably. With higher rates, interest costs would exceed Medicare spending next year – in FY 2027 – making it the second largest government program. Higher rates explain about $2,000 more per household of this increase. Interest would consume almost 30% of all revenue by 2036 under this scenario, up from 19% today and 12% on average over the past half century. Interest costs as a share of GDP have already exceeded the record, 3.2%, and would grow to 5.3% of GDP by 2036 if rates remain elevated.

The agency received more than 1 million reports about imposter scams, with consumers reporting more than $3.5 billion in losses. The FTC is assisted in its work by the reports filed by consumers about the problems they experience in the marketplace. The Federal Trade Commission testified today before the Joint Economic Committee about the agency’s ongoing work to combat fraud and protect consumers from scammers and other bad actors. The current 12.4 percent payroll tax is applied to a worker's first $176,100 of wages (a threshold that grows with average wage growth) – about 82 percent of all earnings – and benefits are calculated only based on that taxable income. The committees’ discussions are designed to help ensure that the public is clear about the FDA’s expectations for data to support the safety and effectiveness of products, so that the public can be confident that the required regulatory standards will be met.